While Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is not the sunniest place in the world, solar energy is viable in the region. With new technologies, some people might be inclined to leave the electrical grid. A team of researchers looked into the economic viability of grid defection in the Upper Peninsula.

The power grid is aging, overburdened and seeing more faults than ever, according to many experts. Any of those breaks could easily lead to prolonged power outages or even equipment damage. Now researchers have demonstrated that the Singular Spectrum Analysis (SSA) algorithm may be the best tool to help authorities remotely detect and locate power grid faults.

The hydrothermal vents and methane seeps on the ocean floor that were once thought to be geologic and biological oddities are now emerging as a major force in ocean ecosystems, marine life and global climate. And through their methane consumption, the life forms living at these vents are helping to prevent potentially catastrophic greenhouse problems.

Human are contributing to unprecedented rates of infectious disease emergence, climate change and biodiversity loss. Whether human ecological impacts affect disease distribution and organisms differently at local or regional scales has been a question. This multi-scale analysis shows that human alterations to biodiversity impact disease at local scales while climate change impacts disease at regional scales. Once more, focusing on a single scale can lead to inaccurate estimations of human impact.

Researchers are one step closer to developing super strong composite materials, thanks to the mantis shrimp, a small, multicolored marine crustacean that crushes the shells of its prey using a fist-like appendage called a dactyl club. Their latest research describes for the first time a unique herringbone structure, not previously reported in nature, within the appendage’s outer layer.

Scientists observe artificial nanofibers self-sorting into organized structures in real-time. This brings scientists closer toward developing intelligent, next-generation biomimics that possess the flexibility and diversity of functions that exist in a living cell.

The vibrations and pulses that male fiddler crabs produce when they are trying to lure females into their burrows to mate are surprisingly informative. These signals serve as a type of ‘Morse code’ that the females decipher to learn more about the size and stamina of their suitors.